Rich and creamy inside with buttery, crispy exteriors, these Parmesan Duchess Potatoes are an easy way to elevate mashed potatoes for an impressive side dish.
I have a weak spot for mashed potatoes. They’re so warm and comforting and just seem to accompany almost every winter meal perfectly. When I’m serving a holiday dinner, such Beef Tenderloin, Slow Roasted Prime Rib, or Honey Mustard Glazed Ham, I like to dress up my mashed potatoes a bit.
These Parmesan Duchess Potatoes are one of my favorite ways to bring a little extra elegance to my holiday table. Fluffy and creamy inside with a buttery, crispy exterior, these individually-piped potato puffs make a beautiful presentation. They’re an easy way to refresh an old favorite for your dinner guests.
What are Duchess Potatoes?
Duchess Potatoes are a French preparation combining mashed potatoes with egg yolks, butter, and seasonings. Once mixed, the potatoes are piped into individual servings and baked until hot and golden.
For this recipe, I’ve added grated parmesan cheese for an extra layer of flavor. (I’ve made them in the past with other cheeses, such as Gruyère, and using Dubliner as the topping for my Stout-Braised Short Rib Cottage Pie.)
A pinch of nutmeg is traditional to the recipe. It gives the potatoes a tiny hint of warmth that plays especially well with the nutty parmesan.
Tips for Making Parmesan Duchess Potatoes
Since the potatoes will be piped, the mixture needs to be as smooth as possible. This is the perfect recipe to pull out your food mill or potato ricer. (If using a hand masher, just be sure to mash the potato chunks as evenly as possible.)
When mixing, you’ll notice that the potatoes are quite a bit stiffer than most mashed potato recipes. It’s important that the potatoes not be too loose, or they’ll spread too much and lose their shape in the oven.
Freezing the potato puffs for a short period before baking also helps them keep their beautiful, piped shape when baked. You don’t want to freeze them all the way through; all you need is 15 minutes, until they’re just starting to firm up.
What Type of Potato Should I Use?
I’ve had the most success making Duchess Potatoes with Yukon Gold potatoes. Their natural, firm texture has always created the prettiest ridges and held their shape the best of all potato varieties I’ve tried.
Can I Make This Recipe In Advance?
Duchess Potatoes can be prepped and piped a day in advance and stored in the refrigerator, covered, until ready to bake. If you’re prepping ahead, you can skip the 15 minute freeze before baking, because the potatoes will be firm and chilled from the refrigerator.
Can I make Duchess Potatoes without a Piping Bag?
Using a large star piping tip will create decorative ridges and valleys that will crisp in the oven. Those crispy edges are a great contrast to the rich, buttery centers. If you don’t have a pastry bag and piping tip, worry not! You can also spoon the potatoes onto the baking sheet and create decorative swirls with the tines of a fork.
Any way you present them, Parmesan Duchess Potatoes are sure to be an impressive addition to any holiday feast!
Video Recap:
Parmesan Duchess Potatoes
Ingredients
- 3 pounds Yukon gold potatoes , peeled and cubed
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter , softened, plus 2 tablespoons melted for brushing the potatoes
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons Parmiganno Reggiano , divided
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt , plus additional to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper , plus additional to taste
- pinch grated nutmeg (optional)
- 3 egg yolks
Instructions
- Place cubed potatoes in a large pot with enough cool water to cover by 2 inches. Add a pinch of salt, bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until potatoes are soft, about 15 minutes. (You can also cook the potatoes in a pressure cooker according to your manufacturer's directions.) Drain potatoes well in a colander and let stand 5 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (standard) or 400 degrees F (convection).
- In a large bowl, pass potatoes through a food mill or ricer, or mash well with a masher. Stir in softened butter with a wooden spoon until melted and combined. Add heavy cream, 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Add egg yolks, one at a time, stirring until incorporated. Transfer potato mixture to a pastry bag fitted with a large star tip.
- Line two baking sheets with parchment and spray with cooking spray. Pipe potatoes onto the sheet in 3-inch circles, about 2-inches in height, leaving about 2-inches between mounds (the potatoes will spread slightly as they bake). Freeze for 15 minutes, until just firm.
- Gently brush potato mounds with melted butter and sprinkle with remaining Parmigiano Reggiano.
- Bake until tops are golden and centers are hot, about 20 minutes. Let stand a few minutes before transferring to a platter with a thin spatula. Serve hot.
Video
Notes
Prep Ahead:
Pipe potatoes onto the lined, greased baking sheets, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and refrigerate up to one day in advance of baking (omit the freezing step). 15 minutes before you're ready to bake, uncover and remove baking sheets from refrigerator and proceed with the recipe as directed, brushing the potatoes with butter and sprinkling with Parmesan.Nutrition Estimate
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
About our recipes
Please note that our recipes have been developed using the US Customary measurement system and have not been tested for high altitude/elevation cooking and baking.
Are you suggesting this recipe serves 12, one each? I am planning for Christmas and am not sure that one is sufficient as a side with roast filet of beef tenderloin. Do you find this to be a good serving or are guests looking for a second?! Thank you.
Den, I havenโt suggested a serving size per guest. The recipe makes 12 potato puffs, each containing about 4 ounces of potatoes. I leave it up to my readersโ judgment to determine how many puffs to allot per guest, depending on the overall scale of the dinner and other side dishes offered.
Happy Cooking!
These were fantastic! I made and served them (everyone loved them) and had 5 left over in my fridge. I meant to freeze them and forgot, decided to see if they would still be good 3 days later and to my surprise, they were just as good! Thanks for such a great recipe!
Have never met a potato I didn’t like and these LOOK FABULOUS. I have found with certain recipes that freezing potatoes may change the texture, can these be piped out recipes on a cookie sheet and frozen then thawed and baked at a later time? in your recipes can add a note saying if this particular recipe can be frozen prior to baking and if it will freeze well after its been cooked/baked.
I love your blog…keep it up….HAPPY HOLIDAYS
Amanda, these duchess potatoes are stunning! I’ve never made them before, but seeing your finished product is inspiring me. BTW – don’t you just love your potato ricer? Turns out the creamiest mashed potatoes EVER!
Do you ever mash potatoes with a kitchen aid mixer? I grew up with this method and was wondering if I could do that instead of the ricer. These look great! Thanks for sharing.
Hi Rebecca, I have made these in the Kitchen Aid before, and they turned out well. I’ve found that some potato varieties can get a little “gluey” in the mixer, which is why I’ve started ricing by default, but I didn’t experience that with these. I was just mindful not to over-beat. Hope you enjoy them!
Looks delicious:) Pictures are awesome. Tempting!
I’m going to try these with my prime rib for New Years. Seems easy enough!
Hope you enjoy them, Reesa!
These look so cute and delicious. The recipe is easy to follow.
I think this is the only way i will be making anything mashed potatoes, they look sooo good! 7star!
Thank you, Khadija! The great part is that they really aren’t much more work than classic mashed potatoes, but make such a pretty presentation, guests always think you spent hours on them. :)
These are quite possibly the most elegant potatoes I have ever laid eyes on. While I’m not much of a potato eater (carbs!!). . .these would be perfect for special occasion meals such as the holidays. I absolutely adore the flavors.
Thank you so much, Lynn! I know what you mean, ’tis the season for splurging! My treadmill and I will be seeing a lot of each other in January. Ha ha.